1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates a system, and method, for providing multimedia contents, and more particularly to continuously or seamlessly connecting multimedia content, being delivered to a display device, to a mobile multimedia terminal available to a spectator when he moves to a different place where he can no longer watch the display device.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 schematically shows a conventional system for providing multimedia contents. The system includes a contents server 11 for supplying multimedia contents, a network 12 for transmitting IP-format (Internet Protocol-format) data, and a fixed display device 13 for outputting selected multimedia content received from the contents server 11 through the network 12. The system further includes a user's terminal 14 for receiving the selected multimedia content from the contents server 11 through the network so as to afford continuous viewing in the event the user moves to a different place where he can no longer watch the fixed display device 13.
More specifically describing the operation of the conventional system, the contents server 11 first transmits selected multimedia content through the network 12 to the display device 13 (101, 102). Then, the user watches, or “consumes,” the received multimedia content on the display device 13. The user's terminal 14, which may be a personal digital assistant (PDA), can control the fixed display device 13.
If the user watching the multimedia content displayed on the fixed display device 13 intends to move to a different place where he can no longer watch the fixed display device, he sends, through the user's terminal 14 to the contents server 11, a request message. The request message indicates that he wishes to watch the multimedia content through the user's terminal 14 (104, 105). For such a request, particular control information (hereinafter referred to as “context information”) is required. The context information includes the identifier (ID) of the multimedia content, content consumed information indicating how much of the multimedia content has been consumed or delivered, information about the user's terminal, and the ID of the user. Based on the context information, the multimedia content is switched to the user's terminal 14 (106, 107), thereby ending transmission of the multimedia content to the fixed display device 13. The switching is such as to enable the user to watch continuously or seamlessly upon moving to different place where the fixed display device 13 is no longer viewable.
However, the transmission of the multimedia content is only designated to a single changed address. Accordingly, the conventional system cannot similarly support multiple users when they move to different places where they can no longer watch the fixed display device together.